Mr Amazing, is gone...

Random co-incidences happen all the time. Sometimes we notice them, other times we don't. Sometimes they are remembered for a lifetime.

Today I arrived at work to do some on-site training and noticed an ambulance roaring along the other way. The receptionist knows me well and informs me our friend Paul has been taken away to be resuscitated.

My friend, university classmate, four year work colleague, facebook socialite, lover of technology and lego, swing dance extraordinaire, Oracle... well he wrote SQL, bringer of smiles, puzzle solver, workaholic, traveler, magic master and extremely hirsute man... never woke up.

You may know him well from where he's been working since graduating from University. You may know him from chance encounters at the AUSOUG conference. You may know him from his swing dancing passion. You may be one of his 500+ facebook friends, alll of whom I'm sure he knew personally; or you may know him by one of his many other interests as he really did live life to the best he could.

It was a tough day for friends of Mr Amazing (known to everyone else as Paul Verevis), I'm sure everyone (including myself) appreciated the support provided by the wonderful team they nuture there - it was like an extended family.

You can find a little of his legacy on twitter, and he's most certainly trending on facebook.

And finally, I found this one of him and some photo-bomber in my e-mail archive. It was from our paint balling session in August 2005. I'm sure I have a few from our uni days somewhere, but I'll have to have a think about where.

Goodbye, mon ami.

ps - I'm pretty sure one of those adjectives of Paulie written above isn't true, I'm sure those who knew and worked with him will spot from a mile away which one ;-)

No doubt others have all sorts of words of their own to describe him